


But I'm A Cheerleader

by Marvel_My_Savior



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Powers, Cheerleaders, Clint Barton & Natasha Romanov Friendship, F/F, Gay, Gay Bar, Gay Bucky Barnes, Gay Rights, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, I'm Bad At Summaries, Lesbian Character, M/M, Natasha Romanov Has Issues, POV Wanda Maximoff, Protective Natasha Romanov, Useless Lesbians, Wanda Maximoff Needs a Hug, but later not at the start, idk - Freeform, possibly might have smut, undecided - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-11
Updated: 2019-11-23
Packaged: 2020-06-26 07:20:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 13,080
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19763287
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Marvel_My_Savior/pseuds/Marvel_My_Savior
Summary: A ScarletWidow AU that is based around the ideas, scenes and stuff in the movie But I'm A Cheerleader.





	1. I Think She Likes Girls

**Author's Note:**

> Hey so I decided on a whim after watching But I'm A Cheerleader to make this and this is like my first serious fic so really sorry if it sucks. It's not gonna be identical to the movie but definite connections and about the same idea. Also, chapters will be song titles or lyrics because I think that's cool.

Wanda Maximoff walked down the busy and crowded halls of Shield High School. She was still in her cheerleading uniform from when they had practiced earlier that morning. She can still remember each of the moves and could envision how each of the girls around her moved. It was a normal kind of thought in her mind. As she made her way to her locker, she spotted her twin coming up beside her, which meant he must have finished morning track practice.

"Hey Pietro," Wanda spoke, giving him her attention while also seeming uninterested. It is her twin, she sees him every day. He fell into step with her and flashed her his signature boyish grin.

"Hello, dear sister of mine. Did you enjoy getting a tongue down your throat this morning?" He spoke jokingly with an edge of sarcasm. Wanda smacked his arm before stopping to open her locker.

"Oh piss off Piet, and if you must know, it was as pleasant as usual. I just don't think he's a good kisser, that's all," Wanda almost sighed at the end. She and Vision had been dating for about a year and a half at this point, but she never really enjoyed kissing him that much. A hug was fine, and so was cuddling if not a bit uncomfortable. He was probably just a bad kisser. It's not like they aren't right for each other. She's a cheerleader, and he's an athlete, so it only made sense. He was also smarter than most, which she liked a lot about him. However, there was always just something in the back of her mind that didn't make sense, but she always opted to push it away.

"I don't get you sometimes Wanda. Vision is built like a dream. I mean he's tall and thin but still has muscle," Pietro's voice started to match with his eyes as they began to glaze over, "He's got stylish blonde hair and is kind and dresses nicely-"

"You sound a little bit gay," He was interrupted by Pepper Potts, who was Wanda's best friend. Pepper's tone was friendly, but there was a noticeable amount of what couldn't quite be determined as disgust or pure judgment. Wanda watched as her twin snapped his mouth shut and shrank back a little. Yes, Wanda had noticed that Pietro did tend to sound like a homosexual, but she didn't believe he was gay. They were raised right and prayed to the god above. Therefore he couldn't be gay and Wanda knew she wasn't either.

"Ha as if Pep, unless Vision has tits I could care less about him," He chuckled and Wanda smiled. He always made the stupidest jokes, which lead to Pepper, quirking her lips into a smile as well. Wanda finished grabbing her things and took a look at the pictures in her locker. All of them were mostly of her friends and family. Some pictures showed her with the cheer squad, Pietro, or Vision. There was a small picture at the bottom that she'd taken from a magazine her father got Pietro a few weeks ago. It was a picture of a brunette in a cute top and underwear. She had convinced herself that she merely had it because she liked the outfit and her style. The girl wasn't hard on the eyes either, but anyone could see that. She'd taken it because Pietro didn't have too much interest in it, much to her father's silent disappointment. Wanda took one last look before closing her locker and turning around to see Pepper had moved look over her shoulder.

"Who's the girl?" She laughed but it almost seemed fake. Wanda shook it off as an attempt to make the question seem less intrusive. She shrugged before answering.

"Some girl from a magazine, I think her top looks cute," she answered. Pepper just nodded as a form of agreement. Wanda began walking, and the two others followed, walking along each side of her. Pietro was on her left and Pepper took her place on the right side. They fell into a comfortable silence as Pietro pulled out his phone and began texting while Pepper checked her schedule. Wanda's eyes followed each person around her as she observed the hall. The gray lockers had people leaning against them and chatting away while expensive-looking shoes moved along the beige tile. She spotted some of the cheerleaders laughing and talking, and she smiled. Only one person saw her, and perhaps it was just her imagination, but the girl almost looked sad to see her. She was drawn out of her thoughts as she felt an arm pulling her off to the side. She recognized the grip as Pietro's and willingly went with it. He pulled her into one of the hub areas, which were small pockets in the hallway with seats and tables. The teachers would often send students out to these to work. He looked around and awkwardly shifted as Pepper continued on without them only  
sparing a single glance back at them.

"Is it just me or are people acting kinda weird today?" He lowered his tone like he didn't want anyone to hear. Wanda did the same.

"What do you mean?" she spoke in a matching tone as his only with a spike of confusion. She glanced over at the clock that hung above one of the wooden tables to see that they only had two minutes left of the passing period. She silently hoped whatever he was on about was going to be quick.

"People keep saying strange things and looking at us strangely. Like today, after I changed out of my track clothes and was putting my stuff into my gym locker, Rhodey came up and said that he'd miss me. What does that even mean!" Pietro raised his voice just a little. His widened blue eyes showed his raised awareness and anxiety towards the whole situation. Wanda suddenly felt uneasy after hearing what he had to say. Her friend's face from before flashed back into her mind. She couldn't decide if she felt nervous or threatened. Nevermind that though as they had one minute now and they had to hurry.

"I don't know Piet. Summer is coming up, so maybe he meant he'll miss you over the summer. I mean, doesn't his family go to New York all summer or something to stay with his grandparents?" Wanda grabbed him as she talked to get them walking again. She relaxed when she felt him relax at her words and hum as if to say she was right. The halls were almost empty at this point, with people like them rushing to reach their classes. Her class was across from her brother's and so they parted swiftly after reaching them. The classroom in question was her health class in which she sat next to Vision. Wanda took her seat and smiled at her boyfriend, who returned the gesture. Placing her books under the desk, she sat up in the slightly uncomfortable metal chair and listened to the teacher start class. About halfway through class out of the corner of her eye, she saw Vis lean over, and she moved to face him.

"I'm driving you home, remember? I figured we could hang out there until your brother gets home, cause I know he jogs home," He spoke quietly and then gave her his attention for a response. Wanda raised an eyebrow just the tiniest bit.

"Uh yeah he does and sounds like a plan I guess," She made herself sound uninterested to mask the thoughts that were bouncing around in her mind. Vis nodded and gave her a thumbs-up before turning to finish copying down the notes. She did the same only she was less focused on them now than before.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

At the end of the day, Wanda met Vision in the parking lot and got into his car. The entire time she occupied herself with her phone because he was oddly silent until they were about three minutes away from her house. He cleared his throat and she smiled while pocketing her phone.

"So you know I only want the best for you, right?" He sounded nervous and he was never nervous. It was something she liked about him.

"I would assume so and like to believe so," Wanda let an airy giggle, "Why are you being so weird?"

"Oh nothing, I just wanted to make sure you knew how much I care about you in case I don't say it often enough," Vis grabbed her hand with the one that wasn't on the steering wheel and showed a tight-lipped smile. Wanda just nodded and looked forward as he pulled into her driveway. At the same time, she spotted Pietro making his way down the street and got out to wave to him. Vision followed suit and they watched as he waved back and sped up. While waiting, Wanda looked down to see him wearing the new shoes she'd helped him pick out. They were green, and gray Adidas running shoes that he had said were really comfortable. When he reached them, he pulled out two Bluetooth earbuds and stretched.

"Wow, I made good time, I guess," He spoke between breaths and smiled small. Vision nodded and held out his arms to gesture to the door but didn't say anything. Wanda gave her twin a confused look that he returned, but they went into the house anyway. As they walked in, they were greeted by the sight of their parents, Pepper, and Rhodey sitting around the room. There was also a man they'd never seen before standing behind the couch. He was tall and had a mustache goatee combo that matched his wavey brownish-black hair. He had a simple and noticeably fake smile graced upon his face. Vision stood behind them, blocking the door so they couldn't leave. All things considered, the situation didn't seem like the best. Wanda opened her mouth to speak but was cut off by the unidentified man.

"Hi, you must be Wanda and Pietro. I'm Stephen Strange and I work for an association called Marvelous Directions." He spoke with fake cheer and it almost disgusted Wanda. Whatever was going on, she knew that neither of them was going to like it.


	2. Wake Me Up When It's All Over

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wanda and Pietro deal with the news of having to attend Marvelous Directions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ok so I half regretted it but who am I to start something and never finish... well actually I do that a lot but I know it's annoying so I'll try my best here.
> 
> also,  
> Трахни тебя - Fuck You

The already nervous energy that danced in the air intensified with the silence that happened after Strange finished talking. Wanda saw her parents looking anywhere but at them, and Pepper stood fidgeting next to Rhody. She shifted her weight from one foot to the other. She could see Pietro's feet flexing in his running shoes if she moved her gaze downwards. It was something he often did when he wanted to run or move away from something. Vision stood with his arms crossed over his chest in front of the door. She hated that because he was only doing it to prevent either of them from leaving. She hated feeling trapped. The patterns on the rug beneath her feet started to blend after she stared at it for so long. Wanda longed for something, anything to break the tension even if it was someone breaking in. Just something to make someone talk and tell her what's happening. She started to panic a little when she could hear each breath that filled the room. As if on queue and sensing her rising panic attack, Pietro spoke up. 

"Hi and not to be rude, but who the hell are you?" He asked a question and spoke with confusion, but Wanda could hear some challenge behind his words.

"Pietro!" Her father snapped at him, and finally, both parents looked to them.

"Well, I'm sorry, but we've been standing in silence for almost over 5 minutes!" He snapped back, and Wanda looked at him. She expected this kind of thing from him. If there was one thing she knew about her brother is that he never really knew when to just back down. She watched their father sigh, and their mother sit up while clearing her throat. 

"Can you two just take a seat on the couch please so we can all talk to you?" She gestured to the love seat sofa next to the longer one that they sat on. Wanda moved first and took her seat on the gray suede couch. Pietro followed soon after but with more weight in his steps. Wanda made eye contact with Pepper and held it with a questioning look. She was hoping Pepper would break and she did.

"Listen, you guys are our good friends and we only want what's best for you. And recently we've seen some concerning behavior that we decided to take care of before it got too extreme," Pepper babbled like she was just trying to get it over with, and she probably was. Vision had come closer and away from the door, but that was the only comfort. 

"You think there's something wrong with us?" Disbelief laced Wanda's words. She barely was able to finish before their father jumped in.

"We think you guys are homosexuals!" He burst his words out as though he would only get that one chance to say them. Her jaw dropped, and her body stiffened to the point where she was sure if something hit her, she'd snap in half. Pietro simply let an audible but small gasp at the accusation. She shook her head slowly, but she saw Pepper nod and elbow their other friend.

"I mean Pietro, the way you talk about guys is just weird. Talking about how muscular they are or how nice they look." Rhody spoke up and gave an apologetic look at the end.

"And Wanda, the picture of the girls and the staring during practice-"

"You don't even like kissing me," Vision cut Pepper off before she could finish her bit, "I feel more like a friend than a boyfriend!"

"Alright, everybody, let's calm down so I can explain to them what is gonna happen just so it's easier," Strange stepped forward. He looked at Wanda and Pietro, "Tomorrow you guys are going to arrive at Marvelous Directions, a camp program where we get rid of the homosexual in you. Since there are only two weeks till summer anyway, just like the other people attending, you will be there all summer." Wanda had thought this couldn't get any worse, but she was wrong. She couldn't miss her entire summer and even worse at a gay camp. She sat with her hands on her knees and staring straight in front of her. She chose to focus on the picture wall instead of the people around her. She felt the dip in the couch seat next to her disappear. One glance over let her see that Pietro had sprung to his feet.

"This is bullshit!" He shouted looking at everyone except Wanda.

"Pietro calm down. I know it sounds bad, but it's for the best," Their mother defended against his statement. Wanda couldn't find the will to stand up and help him even though she wanted to. A feeling she couldn't quite place paralyzed her. She couldn't tell if it was anger, anxiety, or depression. Her body just felt heavy and like it was dragging her down.

"Calm down?! You're sending us to a gay camp for the summer! Трахни тебя!" Wanda immediately recognized the Russian swear that left his mouth. Their mother was originally from Russia, which prompted the decision to have them grow up speaking two languages. Nowadays, they just used it for fun or to express great anger. At that point, the room became blurry mostly and all the words spoken were drowned out. She couldn't focus on anything. Except that her friends and family thought she was a lesbian and were sending her away. Where did it all go wrong? She slowly brought her knees to her chest and listened to the fuzzy yelling and arguing that consumed the space surrounding her.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Wanda watched silently as a furious Pietro threw stuff into his backpack, she had already finished packing. After Pietro's verbal sparring had ended, the man left after whispering a few things to their parents. Vision, Rhody and Pepper had followed after him with both Pepper and Rhoady sparing sad looks back at them. Her twin stormed around the house for a while. She was still shaken up a bit, though, and packed her backpack for the start of what was to be the worst summer ever. She had been emptying Pietro's bag of his school stuff when he walked into his room. Wanda, for a moment, thought he was going to yell at her but she should have known better. He just sighed, dropped his shoulders along with his defensive stance and flopped onto the bed. She had tossed the backpack at him and after 15 minutes he pulled himself up.

Now she was wrapped in a crimson red blanket and curled up in the blue tall armchair that resided in the corner of his bedroom. She was sleeping in his room tonight, which wasn't unusual when distressing things happened. She would always sleep in the armchair somehow comfortable in the most uncomfortable position. In her head, all she could think of was all the times she'd basically checked out the girls at her school and the numerous times she took more interest in those magazines than her brother. She couldn't help but think that maybe they were right about her and if so what was she going to do? Before she could begin to answer her question, a soft pillow hit her face. The usual grin masked her brother's face and Wanda playfully rolled her eyes. 

"Real nice Piet," she used a considerable amount of sarcasm.

"Well you were thinking too hard," He shrugged but his smile dwindled, "It'll be okay sis. We'll get out of there and prove all of them wrong." He tossed his bag next to where hers was on the tan carpeted floor. With that done, he hopped into bed and flicked the light off. The only light that now illuminated the room was the moonlight, which peaked through the curtainless blinds. 

"Ugh, I just wanna sleep until summer is over," She sank back into the chair, already feeling sleep calling her name. 

"I wish the same," Pietro's voice sounded muffled indicating that he was facing away from her and towards the window.

"Well, if I don't get up tomorrow, can you promise to let me sleep until all of this is over with and done?" Wanda at first meant it as a joke, but it turned more serious and she didn't know why. She didn't even know what exactly the question was asking. 

"Of course, will you do the same for me?" Pietro seemed to understand, though and he sounded a little shakey. It was like the reality of this afternoon was finally really entering his mind. Wanda didn't hesitate with her answer.

"Always Pietro," she was glad that at the beginning of this awful experience that she'll have some familiarity with her in the form of him. She closed her eyes and sleep overtook her in what felt like seconds.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

As morning arrived both of them indeed woke up. Both with a small amount of resistance shoved their bags and themselves into the family's red SUV. Once they got about 20 minutes out, there were mostly only trees passing by. Just another 20 minutes and they'd arrive in hell Wanda thought to herself before taking her phone out again and scrolling through her social media feed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I figured I show a bit more of each of their personality traits in this chapter even the story is mostly gonna be centered around Wanda and eventually Natasha as well.


	3. Take Me To Church

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wanda and Pietro arrive at Marvelous Directions to start what they think will be the worst summer of their lives

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Surprise! I actually wrote another chapter I mean what a twist, Anyway this is gonna be a bit longer than usual so yeah *finger guns in anxiety*  
> ok I don't even know why I typed that out but it's cool I guess

The world passed by as the car drove closer to what was sure to be hell. Pietro had stayed silent the entire time and only scoffed when their parents tried to offer them coffee. Wanda, for the most part, had stayed on her phone to avoid experiencing the awkward silence. She went through Instagram and saw people posting about their summer plans. It was like she was torturing herself but she could find no other way to entertain herself. By the time they were five minutes away from Marvelous Directions, she had run out of posts to look through and let out a sigh before locking her phone. Trees were starting to disappear a little in favor of spaced-out houses and buildings. It didn't matter if it looked nice though, because nothing could make Wanda enjoy this.

She thought lightly about how one would even go about learning how not to be a "homosexual" anyway. She didn't like that word and she couldn't quite place why in her head it was fine, but when other people said it, their tone would ruin the word entirely. She didn't get too much time to dwell on it before she felt the vehicle slow down and turn into a small parking lot. She took the time to make eye contact with her twin, who shook his head angrily. The building that was now in front of them was decently sized. The outside was styled with neutral colors and, in her opinion, a very extra looking garden in the very front. The car silenced when her parents shut it off and stared blank faced ahead. Then again, Wanda assumed that all of them were blank-faced because there wasn't just one emotion to settle on when gazing at this place. She noticed a medium-sized sign above the door that said "Marvelous Directions" with a man and woman holding hands. Wanda heard her father cough, but it was obviously fake, so both twins took it as their cue to start getting out.

Wanda reached into the trunk to grab her dark red Adidas bag and her brother's dark blue Nike bag. She tossed him his bag and closed the trunk harshly like her displeasure wasn't already known. The four walked closer to the door, which opened to reveal a middle-aged woman wearing the same fake kind of smile as Strange. She clasped her hands together and made a noise of fake glee.

"Ah! You two must be Wanda and Pietro! You guys are the last to arrive. I'm Maria Stark, the owner of this wonderful place," She smiled and stuck her hand out to greet them, but only Wanda's parents accepted the gesture. I mean wonderful is a very strong word she thought to herself. Upon seeing that neither teens were going to make any attempt to be civil, Maria pulled her hand away. 

"Anyway, my son Tony can take your bags while we discuss some things. TONY!" She turned and screamed for a man that soon exited the house after hearing the call. He looked older than them but only by a few years. Most likely he was in his early twenties, and maybe Wanda was mistaken, but he had a vibe to him that didn't exactly scream heterosexual as she expected. His smile was real and warmer than Maria and Strange's so she decided to play nice. 

"Hey I'm Tony Stark, I just help out around here so you might see me around doing work or whatever," He took their bags that they handed to him. Before Wanda could be polite and thank him, she was interrupted by his mother whom she already hated.

"Yes well anyway Tony hurry up and take those to the rooms," She shooed him away and moved back to address the only other adults, "So you guys won't be needed anymore I'll just give these two a quick tour of the place before they have time to get to know their roommates." Both their mother and father nodded. 

"It's for the best kids and we will miss you while you're gone," Those were their father's parting words and Wanda thought they sucked. They seemed to lack any real emotion so she would treat her words just the same.

"Yeah, whatever," She followed Pietro, who was already on his way into the house. She didn't even look back as Maria closed the door behind them. They didn't even really get a chance to look around.

"Before we get started, you will have to follow the dress code," Maria proceeded to pull clothes out of seemingly nowhere and handed them out. Wanda held up a pinkish-red feminine shaped t-shirt, and Pietro held up a blue polo shirt with cloudy white buttons. They were both handed a set of those items likely so they didn't have to wear the same shirt every day. 

"We let you guys where what bottoms you want as long as for girls, they're skinny jeans or skirts, and for guys, they have to be dress pants or regular jeans. The girl's bathroom is to the left, and the boy's bathroom is to the right. Please come back here when you finish," Maria pointed in each direction and then let her hands fold down in front of her. Wanda walked quickly to the bathroom and made sure to lock the door behind her. This particular bathroom wasn't a big stall bathroom, which she was happy about because that meant no one could come in. The walls were a brighter pink compared to the shirt given to her, and the white porcelain sink was small.

Wanda looked at herself after she changed in the small mirror. She had already been wearing ripped skinny jeans, which thankfully meant she only had to change shirts. This shirt was designed to accent the type of body she had. She was thin but had a small layer of muscle due to cheer practice and training. She swiftly straightened out the shirt a bit and made her way back to the foyer.

Pietro was still in the bathroom, which gave her time to take in some of her surroundings. Directly behind her were stairs that lead to who knows what, and she stood on light brown wood floors. She determined it was real wood, which meant Maria was probably on the wealthier side. The walls had older patterns on them and were a cream color. It was pretty boring besides the colors of blue and pink that appeared every so often in the decoration. She heard Pietro's footsteps approach and stop when he was next to her. Maria, who had been sitting on a pink armchair, stood up and cleared her throat. 

"You already know what we are going to be doing here, so it's pointless to repeat it. Through individual and group lessons, you will discover the true direction in which love is supposed to go. Simple things like cleaning or fixing cars is an example. However, today I'm letting you take the time to meet the other students," Maria began walking. They both reluctantly followed after her, "Over here is the boy's dorm, which, Pietro, you will be sharing with the four other boys in the program." The walls in this hallway were painted with dark and light blue stripes along with pictures of cars, girls, and sports magazines that were framed on the wall. Maria was really going for this whole gender role thing. She opened the door and practically shoved Pietro in before yelling in that this was the last student and she'll come back when the free time is over. She shut the door and turned to face Wanda while flashing a grin. It took everything in her to not simply roll her eyes in return.

She was lead to a different part of the house, and she knew they were at the right spot when the walls were the same as before but now pink. There were pictures of lipstick, babies, and cheerleaders decorating the walls. Maria spared her the talk and opened the door to allow Wanda in. She yelled the same thing that she told the boys before closing the door behind her. There were five beds and four of them were already occupied. The first girl had brown hair that was cut short. The second had long blonde hair and was thin but easily had more muscles than Wanda herself did. The third had dark hair put up in a bun. She was the only one wearing shorts, surprisingly. And the last one had long fiery red hair that seemed to have blonde bits to it and had what Wanda thought a dancer's body would look like. The first girl was also the first to speak.

"Hi there," She gave Wanda a hello nod, "I'm Maria but you can call me Hill and in order, that's Carol, Valkyrie, and Natasha." They all waved hello except for the now named redhead, Natasha, who scoffed a little. 

"Don't mind her, from what I know from being here for thirty minutes is that she's an asshole," Valkyrie rolled her eyes to add emphasis to her words. Natasha appeared to want to challenge her in return.

"Just because I'm not nice after knowing you for thirty minutes doesn't mean I'm an asshole, it just means that you aren't worth my time," She snapped back at her. Wanda didn't like this at all and was already backing herself into the light-colored wood door.

"Hey! Watch it and be nice! And stop acting as if you could actually do shit!" Carol seemed to come to Valkyrie's defense, and Hill face palmed while shaking her head. She muttered something that sounded along the lines of 'not this again'. Natasha narrowed her eyes before turning so fast Wanda wouldn't be surprised if she whiplashed.

"You want me to be nice Danvers? Fine! So new girl that hasn't had to endure thirty minutes of this bullshit, what's your name?" Now all eyes were on Wanda, and she never thought she'd want to run away so much in her entire life.

"Wanda. Wanda Maximoff," She looked down a bit and whispered. Carol looked sympathetic, and Hill looked upset but not at her.

"How about you speak up? What was it? Wanda?" Natasha sat back a little, but the glares didn't stop, "With a name like that, your parents must hate you for sure." Natasha deadpanned, and if it weren't for how much offense she was taking, Wanda might have been able to notice how her tone was less offensive and more defensive. She was not prepared to see Carol practically launch herself at the redhead.

"THAT'S IT BITCH!" Wanda watched as Carol tackled Natasha, who yelped at the unexpected attack before defending herself. Valkyrie was trying to pull them apart while Hill was screaming at them to stop. She knew this was going to be tough, but all of this was overwhelming. Wanda felt her heart rate speed up, and her eyes start to tear up. Her throat felt tighter each minute she endured the yelling and fighting before she broke and ran out.

She ran down the hallway and found a bathroom that joined the boy and girl hallways. She practically slammed the door behind her before going to the end stall and collapsing onto the cold tile. Her breaths were coming out quick and in bursts, but she still felt like she was getting no air. At this point, Wanda had huddled her legs to her chest and was rocking back forth. The vision of the fight was still fresh in her mind as the world seemed to collapse around her. Her ears were ringing, and she felt the urge to scratch at her throat but was able to hold back. The world started fading out to black. She was crying. She didn't have Pietro or anyone else to care about her right now, and she was all alone. The thought freaked her out even more, and she was going to lean into the darkness before a male voice broke the trance. At first, she hoped it was Pietro, but upon hearing it a second time, she could tell it wasn't. Still, it drew her back, and she looked forward to meet blue eyes. A boy her age with blonde hair and a scrawny build had knelt in front of her. 

"Hey, hey it's okay," He spoke gently and reached his hand out slowly like he was approaching an injured animal. Wanda was still gasping and shaking but continued staring into the boy's eyes. "My name is Steve Rogers. You're in a bathroom at Marvelous directions. Take a deep breath. Please," Despite not even knowing her, he sounded almost desperate for her to listen to what he was saying. Wanda tried to take a deep breath, and it worked one time before the calm disappeared once more.

"I- I can't," She had stopped crying which was an improvement.

"You gotta try. How about I tell you about my day? This morning I woke up earlier and I was upset because I had to come here. I had to take a deep breath to calm down," Steve took a slow inhale at the end of his words and Wanda attempted to reciprocate it, "That Maria lady is really annoying so I had to take some deep breaths before I could deal with her." He did the same thing again, and she felt herself slowly calming down. She had no idea exactly why this was making her feel better. Perhaps it was because he was giving her something else to listen to besides her head and something else to focus on. Once she had finally calmed down, she laid back against the wall and almost started crying again.

"I'm sorry, the girls in my dorm room where fighting and yelling and I freaked out. I'm so sorry if that weirded you out." Steve just chuckled a bit before sitting next to her. He was smaller than her for sure, but it made her feel more comfortable.

"It's gonna take a lot more than that to weird me out," He smiled, and Wanda returned it with her smile, "What's your name?" He tilted his head a bit, reminding her of a puppy but mostly a golden retriever. 

"Wanda Maximoff," She sounded more confident this time around. 

"Well, Wanda Maximoff I'd say we are going to be good friends. I mean we do have to spend ALL summer here," He laughed and she joined in.


	4. Coming Up For Air

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wanda learns more about Steve and tries to survive a confrontation with the other girls again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IM BACK HOES! I've had like that real writer's block so hopefully, this chapter doesn't suck but what do I know

"That's why I never trust seafood from Mcdonalds!" Wanda was laughing and could barely contain herself as Steve finished telling his story. He was laughing with her and leaning forward while holding his stomach.

"Okay, how are you not on some watch list?" She calmed down and jokingly asked him between breaths. He just grinned and shrugged. "Well, you've successfully cheered me up with that story." 

"So my master plan is complete then. Good to know," He spoke like he was joking, but she could tell that the boy was happy he helped her. After Steve declared that they were going to be friends, he launched into a wild story as a way to raise her spirits. She could tell that he certainly was a strange but special kind of person. Based on the story, he really takes 'it's not the size of the dog in the fight; it's the size of the fight in the dog to a new level, she thought. 

"So were you always from around here?" She looked over to the small boy.

"Is it obvious?" He tilted his head with a small smile, "Nah, I'm from Brooklyn. My family moved over to this area a few months ago."

"Do you miss Brooklyn?" He sighed and seemed to think for a moment.

"Yeah, cause you know, home is home, isn't it? In my mind, there isn't anywhere like it. I mean, you get into fights, but you meet some pretty great people even though you meet some pretty bad people too." His face turned uncharacteristically dark for a second before returning to normal. "Where's your home?"

Wanda thought for a minute. Technically her home was where she lived, but it didn't feel so homey anymore. It felt cold and distant knowing what her parents thought of her now. It felt like a place she was no longer allowed to express herself in. She didn't know if she could call it home anymore, so she decided on a simple answer.

"Wherever my twin brother is, I guess. As cheesy as it sounds, home is where the heart is, and my real home doesn't feel like home anymore, so I guess for now," She shrugged it off like it didn't bother her. The look on Steve's face looked as though he wanted to ask why, but he refrained. 

"You got a twin brother? Well, where is he now?" She wasn't surprised that he didn't realize that Pietro was her brother. They looked sort of alike, but they were fraternal twins. He had is blonde silver hair that grew black at the roots, and she had her regular old brown hair. They had a similar build as they both had slim bodies, so more of a runners build. Which is why Pietro did track, she guessed. Though even with that to the naked eye, they didn't look too much like siblings. 

"He's here. Pietro Maximoff." She smiled lightly and giggled as Steve's face went through the phases of realization. It finally settled on confused and surprised before he spoke.

"Oh! He's your brother? Guess he's off the table then," Steve chuckled, but she just stared at him. He looked over and stopped when he realized that she wasn't laughing with him.

"What?" Now Wanda was confused. He sounded serious about the possibility of being into her brother.

"I just thought that because we're friends, I shouldn't have a thing for your brother. Not that I did because we just met but for future reference." Steve now looked confused as well and a bit of awkward like he wasn't expecting this kind of reaction.

"But you're not supposed to be gay, so why would you ever like him anyway?" Wanda shook her head, not to say no, but to express her concern. She was a bit startled when Steve tensed up, and his friendly nature seemed to shrink back.

"You don't actually believe that crap right?" he looked at her with a face of questioning but eyes of disbelief and a little anger. Wanda shrank back even with how small he was. The blue eyes that were initially friendly and welcoming were now cold like ice.

"Believe what? That being gay is wrong? A sin? Because I mean it is right?" Now she wasn't confused, but she had sarcasm in her voice. He should know this. It's why they were here in the first place.

"I thought you were cool Maximoff," he shook his head and she cringed at the use of her last name, "So you're just like every other jerk in this world, huh?" It wasn't an actual question, and she knew it but it didn't stop her.

"Jerk? How am I a jerk for pointing out the obvious? That's why we're here in the first place Steve," Wanda made sure her voice didn't raise no matter how much it wanted to.

"That's not why we're here! We're here because our parents grew up and were taught that being gay was wrong! But it's not! We have the chance to be a new accepting generation and raise one the same way! But they've already brainwashed you!" Steve was on his feet, and he didn't restrict himself from talking louder.

"I'm not brainwashed! I just know that there's something wrong-"

"There is nothing wrong with you. Or me." Steve lowered his voice and looked at her with a hurt expression. The fury was still in his eyes, but it wasn't aimed at her anymore. She wondered what happen to him. It was when he responded that she realized she had spoken out loud. His eyes were big and his face looked haunted.

"They beat me up in alleyways because one of the other boys saw me kiss a boy. He was moving so he didn't have to deal with it but me? I was cornered and beat up to the point where I thought it was wrong too. I never backed down from a fight physically, but emotionally I was done. That's why we moved. Then I met a guy named Sam Wilson, and he helped me teach myself again that it wasn't wrong. I was so happy that I told my parents, and now I'm here. Being different shouldn't cause anyone so much pain." He finished speaking, and Wanda stared at him dumbfounded by what he had said. On one side, she was always told that being gay was awful, but on the other side, what he just told her sounded unfair and cruel. 

"We're all just looking for love, aren't we?" He added on before waving bye and leaving Wanda alone in the bathroom. Wanda knew she should probably go soon as well. When she stood up, she almost fell back down because her legs were asleep. After regaining balance, she walked forward and looked at herself in the mirror remembering what Steve had told her. Physically there wasn't anything wrong with her but emotionally, she didn't know. She didn't know if she was right or wrong, and it hurt to think about. She pushed the thoughts away while fixing her hair and proceeding to leave the bathroom.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
Wanda stood in front of the pink door and took a deep breath. It sounded calm enough on the other side, which soothed her anxiety a little bit. When she opened the door, she was greeted by the sight of Natasha holding an ice pack on her face while Carol was dealing with a bloody nose and lip. Valkyrie was trying to help Carol as Hill occasionally looked over at Natasha or Carol and shook her head mumbling to herself. Once again Hill was the first to notice her and she sprang up.

"Wanda! You're alive! Had us all worried for a hot minute there," Natasha groaned and rolled her eye, "Well, you had three of us worried. What happened?"

"Just got a little overwhelmed, that's all," Wanda went over to her stuff that had been moved to the last bed next to Natasha's. The pink bedspread was undoubtedly ugly, but at least it felt comfortable when she sat down on it. The pillow was white, which Wanda appreciated because she thought she might kill herself the next time she sees some insensitive pink-colored thing. She noticed that Valkyrie had changed into a skirt most likely to adhere to the dress code.

"What? Can't handle a fight princess?" Natasha scoffed while smirking at her. Wanda swallowed and tried to think of something clever to say back. The stupid look on the other girls just widened as time ticked by without a response. 

"Oh my god! Can you go one minute without being an asshole? Just one?" Carol looked past Valkyrie's shoulder to see the Natasha.

"I could, but what would be the fun in that?" She spoke with sarcasm and an eye roll per usual. Wanda heard Valkyrie say something under her breath, but she couldn't decipher what it was. A silent giggle from Carol followed quickly after, though. 

"Guys we are supposed to be getting to know each other," Hill cut in looking annoyed which Wanda guessed was going to become a regular thing around here.

"I think that Carol and Valkyrie are getting to know each other just fine," Natasha rolled over so she wouldn't be facing the other girls. Wanda assumed that she forgot that she was there. The redhead remembered quick enough. "What're you looking at? Piss off." 

She quickly looked away and took her time to glance around the room more. There was a mirror on the wall next to drawers she supposed they were going to put clothes in. Above the drawers were a list of rules. Number one said that they should always look their best. Number two said that cooking and cleaning was better than working and building. Wanda didn't even think that counted as a rule but more as an opinion. A stupid one too, the more she thought about it. It set women back like 50 years just in that one sentence. With that in mind, she didn't bother to read the rest. She looked back over at the girls that were all back to doing their own thing now. Hill was reading something while Carol and Valkyrie whispered to one another. Natasha still covered her face with the icepack and had laid back her bed. She hoped that Pietro was having more luck than she was at the moment. She also hoped that none of the other guys beat up Steve yet.


	5. Wish We Could Turn Back Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wanda has a small chat with Natasha that turns south.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So you know a hoe hasn't slept in over two days and I haven't updated this cause I have writer's block but here I am. Also, I'm avoiding working on my AP Lang and Psychology assignments. Also, no proofreading because sleep is lacking. (Translations are at the end)

Wanda laid solemn on her bed for what felt like forever. Hill had given up on trying to get the group to talk awhile ago. Now the only people that spoke were Carol and Valkyrie, who did so in a hushed whisper. Had it not been for the faint rustling she heard every few minutes, she would've assumed Natasha was dead asleep. This was going to be a fun summer indeed. The ceiling was starting to give her a headache, or maybe she had just been lying on her back, staring up for too long. Whatever the reason, she decided to turn on her side. She shuffled and twisted, successfully turning over to lay facing the right side of herself. Wanda did not expect to have to make eye contact with Natasha, who was staring directly back at her. She swallowed hard as Natasha didn't speak and just held the gaze between them. It was only now that she noticed how intense the redhead's green eyes were. They had a hint of a challenge behind them that made Wanda nervous, but it disappeared when she spoke up.

"What are you staring at Maximoff?" The words had venom in them but were spoken in a low tone. As though she didn't feel like drawing attention to them. Wanda could use that to her advantage.

"I could ask you the same thing," Wanda spoke in the same type of whisper for now.

"Alright smart ass but I asked you first," Natasha clearly wasn't the type to back down. By now, Wanda would've apologized and probably turned away. She couldn't bring herself to though right now perhaps because she didn't want to seem weak.

"Love the nickname but why are you whispering? Afraid to attract the attention of Carol and Valkyrie?" There it is. The perfect use of her knowledge. Wanda didn't want to upset Natasha but saying that would maybe stifle her confidence a bit.

"You think I'm afraid of muscle for brains and her lesbian lover? You know, at first, I thought you were just cowardly, but now I'm starting to wonder if you have straw for brain. Maybe both in which case you should definitely go join Dorthy and the tin man on their way to the wizard of oz," Natasha had the most sickeningly taunting smile or a small smirk on her face. It was clear that she already knew from the beginning that she was going to win this verbal battle. Wanda wasn't used to this kind of thing and took it a bit more harsh than she hopes Natasha intended.

"Well, maybe you should join the tin man so that you can get a heart!" Wanda raised her voice so that it was almost at a regular volume. She expected some witty or cruel remark about Natasha having a heart but not finding her worth it or something of that sort. Instead, she saw a fleeting look of guilt on her face, but it was gone just as quick as it appeared.

"Alright princess, that was a bit harsh on my part I'll admit it. Though just like everyone else, I'm pissed that I have to spend my summer with a bunch of gays that I don't particularly care for," Natasha stated with a little softer than previously. Wanda would like to think that in some weird sense that was an apology.

"I'm not gay," Wanda didn't wanna go through this again, but it didn't seem like she had a choice.

"Right a lesbian I know I just said gays for a general statement," Natasha practically waved her off.

"No, I meant that I'm straight."

"Wait really? You actually believe that?" Natasha at first had surprise written across her face than a tiny bit of judgment.

"Yeah I mean my friends said it was weird the way I view other girls, but I'm sure it's just the same as they do," She got defensive at Natasha's accusation.

"Right but you only think that they're thinking the same thing as you. In reality, they're probably not, and I think you know that" she lifted an eyebrow towards Wanda. Wanda thought about it quickly. The pictures of the girls, watching them at practice, the discomfort in kissing vision, preferring to watch the dance team over the football team and it all clicked.

"OH MY GOD STEVE WAS RIGHT I AM A HOMOSEXUAL!" She yelled loudly and gained the attention of everyone else in the room. She saw Natasha roll her eyes in her peripheral vision but couldn't seem to care. She was now sitting upright and looking towards everyone else. Vallkyrie looked at her with extreme confusion before speaking.

"Not that the other thing isn't important, but who the hell is Steve?"

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
Wanda had effectively gotten the attention of everyone in the room. She also managed to confuse everyone within a short time of 5 seconds. Energy and thoughts now rain through as though it were the blood keeping her alive. The realization that she indeed was a lesbian shook her to the core. It took her about 30 seconds to process what Valkyrie had asked, and another 30 for her to actually speak as everyone waited expectantly.

"He-he's just this um guy I talked to while I was in the uh bathroom cause of the whole you know fight thing. And he started to defend being a homosexual, and I was trying to explain to him why it's wrong, but he was persistent and left. Still, I started to understand his point of view, and now I'm a lesbian, oh god-" Wanda had to force herself to stop before she started rambling to no end completely. Hill and Valkyrie looked slightly taken aback as though they were trying to pick apart what she had just word vomited onto them. Natasha raised an eyebrow before shrugging and leaning back against the head of the bed. It was Carol who broke the awkward silence.

"You think being gay is wrong?" Wanda wanted to point out how that wasn't the point of the story but decided against it. After seeing Carol's temper, she was not in any hurry to upset her. 

"Well yes but no. I don't know anymore. I-I think its fine for other people now at least I think I do, but to be that myself. I don't know how to-" She felt the air leave her chest. No, she thought I can't be having a panic attack over this. But the tightening she felt didn't seem to weaken. Now all she could focus on was the realization and the outburst. How the other girls were all staring at her with different looks, but they all felt like judgment. Her mind started racing at all the things they were thinking of her at this moment. Of all the things her friends and family must have been thinking of her. On top of that, she was starting to believe she didn't know what was right or wrong anymore. She gasped realizing she wasn't breathing. Her knees instinctively flew up and found their way against her chest with her arms wrapping around them.

"So you think that loving who you want can be wrong. I mean, how does someone like you even end up here?" Carol had some bite behind her words that Wanda had previously never had pointed at her before. Carol looked like she was about to continue, so Wanda tried to stutter something out to calm her done. Not to calm herself down but to calm Carol down. In her mind, it was her fault that she was upset and she felt like she had to fix it.

"I'm s-sorry Carol-"

"How about you back off brawn for brain? Can't you see she's having a rough time?" Natasha had surprisingly cut off her apology. It was now that Wanda took notice of how she had sat up off the pink and soft headboard to stare Carol down. It was like she was daring Carol to open her mouth again. Wanda didn't know what to think of it. And even through her panic, she was able to be astounded by how, when Natasha turned around to face her, the expression she wore was now the softest it had ever been. Wanda tightened the hold on her legs as her body slowly moved back and forth. 

"Мне жаль," Wanda quickly realized her mistake. She tended to switch between English and Russian occasionally when having a panic attack. Usually, Pietro is there and can understand her, but now there was no such option. To say she was surprised about what happened next was an understatement.

"Все в порядке. Не беспокойся," Natasha replied in Russian just as well as she had spoken it. The redhead looked over her shoulder to see the other three watching with intensity at the scene unfolding before them. She sighed and looked away while standing up and moving to sit next to Wanda. 

"Это всегда успокаивает Баки," she mumbled under her breathe, and Wanda picked out only a name before Natasha turned to her softly. Then she was sure that everyone was going to start flying because Natasha started to sing quietly. 

"Спят усталые игрушки, книжки спят, Одеяла и подушки ждут ребят; Даже сказка спать ложится, Чтобы ночью нам присниться. Ты ей пожелай - баю-бай." Wanda recognized the tune almost immediately. It was a song from a Russian evening TV show that she and Pietro used to watch. Their mum had shown it to them when she started trying to teach them Russian so they could speak English and Russian. She used to sing the song for them when they didn't want to go to sleep but stopped when they were about 7 or 8 years old. Wanda had been too busy thinking and listening to Natasha that she hadn't noticed her breath beginning to even out, and her thoughts slowing down. She let out a long but quiet sigh and looked at Natasha, who had stopped singing and instead settled to hum the tune once she saw Wanda calming down. Wanda glanced over to see everyone has looking bewildered and maybe even a little frightened at the event unfolding in front of them. 

Once she had properly calmed down, Natasha cleared her throat awkwardly and moved to back to her bed. She, of course, could not make it back without threatening something or someone.

"Never speak of that again or you'll regret it," She snapped at Wanda and sat down while folding her arms across her chest.

"Just an idea but maybe we should do the whole getting to know you think. Especially after whatever just happened," Hill spoke and was met with mumbles of agreement and a tired sigh from Natasha.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translations:  
> Мне жаль-I'm sorry  
> Все в порядке. Не беспокойся-It's okay. Don't worry.  
> Это всегда успокаивает Баки-This usually helps Bucky  
> Спят усталые игрушки, книжки спят, Одеяла и подушки ждут ребят; Даже сказка спать ложится, Чтобы ночью нам присниться. Ты ей пожелай - баю-бай-The tired toys are sleeping, and the books asleep, Blankets and the pillows waiting for the kids; Even the fairy tale goes to sleep, so at night we can dream about it. You wish it- bayou - by. (This is a Russian lullaby/theme song from an old kid's evening show)


	6. Get To Know Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wanda and the girls finally get some proper introductions and bond a bit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This isn't important but I would like everyone to know that there's this shy freshman in my acting class and every time I look anxious/upset, she uses a post-it note to make me a little origami crane.

Silence clouded over the room as they each waited for somebody to speak. After Hill suggested they try to be civil and get to know each other, they got particularly quiet waiting for one of them to start. Wanda could see Hill getting uncomfortable and looking away from all of them periodically. She also took notice as to how still Natasha was like she was. Like a statue that didn't want to be seen. She swallowed loudly and looked over to see Carol looking at her nails. No one seemed in any hurry to speak at this point. She expected Valkyrie to at least say something or Hill because they seemed the type, but both avoided eye contact like everyone else. Wanda decided it was up to her to start the conversation seeing as how it couldn't be much different from the sleepovers with the squad she'd had.

"What's your favorite color?" Okay, admittedly, she probably could have pulled that off better. She, however, did get a chuckle from Carol and a smile from Valkyrie. With that in mind, she's going to call it a win. She also found herself glancing over to see Natasha's reaction, but the redhead was just as blank-faced as ever.

"I feel like this room is really wanting me to say pink," Hill said with a smile. Wanda snorted, which gained the laughter of everyone else, and even Natasha smiled. 

"Really? I couldn't tell. I was far too busy focusing on the pink walls and sheets and decor," Carol added on to the joke with sarcasm. Wanda thinks that was the first time sarcasm was not directed at someone in this room. She liked the improvement but knew it was only a matter of time before something goes down. So she waited, but nothing happened, just the sound of light laughter dying away. 

"See guys? This is easy. We just gotta start asking the real questions, and then we can tell Mrs. Pretty In Pink that we're besties now," Hill stated the indisputable truth. Maria was probably going to ask them how well they bonded at some point, and none of them wanted to talk about what went down in the short time they've all been together. Wanda saw this as a chance to question Natasha about her Russian. After all, it's not the most common language to know and she knew the lullaby too. There had to be some kind of story behind this. She also wanted to know who the hell Bucky was. The name was all she picked out when Natasha had made a side comment before singing. Perhaps it was her brother or maybe a best friend of some kind. 

"How do you know Russian?" Once again, Wanda spoke without thinking, and word vomited the question way too directly in her opinion. Natasha made a brief look of surprise, which kind of shocked Wanda. She had to have known that the question was going to come up at some point.

"I thought we said we weren't ever gonna talk about it," Natasha had turned her head to staredown Wanda directly in the eyes. Her expression was unwavering and showed intimidation through and through. Wanda felt intimidated for sure, but there was a mix of something else she couldn't quite place. The stare was strong yet she felt compelled to hold it. 

"No, you said that. I never said anything of the sort," Wanda spoke as she tried to keep her tone even and almost flat. 

"It was implied, princess," Natasha was quick with the comeback and added on the nickname like they'd known each other for more than a few hours. Wanda guessed it was some kind of tactic to distract her. Then again pretty much everything happening right now was an attempt to end the conversation she'd tried to start. Thank God for Valkyrie who cut in before Wanda had to admit defeat and look away.

"C'mon, how are we supposed to get this over with if you get hung up over such a simple question?" It was rhetoric, but Wanda wouldn't have been surprised if Natasha answered it just to spite Valkyrie. That seemed to be an ongoing trend with the mysterious girl.

"Oh, I know! How about we just not get to know each other," Natasha asked a question but her tone suggested otherwise. Wanda sighed and looked down. It was going well for all of two minutes before everything went downhill again. It was like the small cloud of awkwardness that had dissipated simply reformed. No one wanted to say a word anymore, and she decided it wasn't up to her to try again. Maybe it was better that they just don't bother. It seems like none of them would really hang out with each other at school or form a friendship together. Well, except for Carol and Valkyrie, there was something between them already that anyone with eyes could see. She was pulled from her thoughts by the sound of what was becoming a more and more familiar voice.

"I was born in Russia and moved here when I was only 6. I learned how to get rid of the accent, but it's what we sometimes speak back at my house," Natasha spoke evenly to the point where it was almost too flat. Like she was trying her best to keep any real emotion from betraying her. It was this that made Wanda realize there was more to this story, but also that now was not the time to pry. She could let it go for now, but she didn't want to let go of how Natasha looked at her the entire time she spoke. Her gaze was by no means aggressive but felt just as intense none the less. She wonders how the redhead could do such a thing. How she could appear completely normal but have her facial expression feel like it was reading every little detail about you.

"That's something I guess. It's not the same, but in the spirit of bonding, my parents are from Norway. They grew up in a smaller place called Asgard," Valkyrie shrugged like it was something minuscule and unimportant. Which maybe it was to her, but that shouldn't keep them from being semi-interested in learning more. 

"Wow, you guys seem so exotic. My family is from Chicago, which is not nearly as interesting," Hill answered before Wanda could. Natasha's lips seemed to quirk upwards like a part of her wanted to smile while Carol chuckled.

"Same over here. My family is from Boston," It was now that Wanda did take notice of the small accent she had, "What about you, Wanda?"

"Actually yeah she's right. I told you how I knew Russian, so how does the cheerleader know it?" Natasha seemed to mock her when she got to the word cheerleader, but Wanda was too focused on a different part of that detail.

"How do you know I'm a cheerleader?" It felt somewhat strange because she could have sworn that she'd never told any of them that. Natasha smiled now, and that was even stranger.

"Your bag has a patch with some high school's initials and a cheerleader on it. Pardon me for imploring common sense and reasoning skills," The smile was gone now and replaced with a roll of her eyes. This girl was so confusing sometimes. Actually, she was confusing all of the time.

"Uh right yeah that would explain it," She felt dumb now but wanted to move on as quick as possible, "Back to the questioned, my mother is from over there and taught it to my brother and me when we were growing up along with English. I knew the song you sang because it was a part of a show she'd put on for us." Wanda trailed off, remembering how Natasha didn't want to acknowledge the whole singing thing. To avoid what she might feel if she looked at her instead she turned her attention to Carol since she was the one who asked in the first place.

"And she's special too. So Hill and I are the only boring people here, I guess," Carol leaned back on to her bed. It was a sign of relaxation and seemed to show that comfort built between them. Wanda liked this feeling without a doubt. She always hated conflict and could never stand fights in her household. Pietro would always shut his door after letting her in, and they would find ways to distract themselves if their parents were fighting. 

"At least if any of you are in Chicago, I can tell you that visiting the bean is definitely not worth your time," Hill made a face of disinterest to accompany her words. Wanda smiled softly and could've sworn she felt eyes on her, but no one seemed to be looking. So far, their "bonding time" was going decent enough, and she figured that by the end of it, they'd be able to act like they fluently enjoyed each other's company. Well, Natasha might not be able to act like it, but it seemed like she just hated everyone, so this could be chalked up to her being her usual self. She couldn't wait to tell her twin about all the things that have happened in the last few hours. There's no way he'd be able to top this, and hopefully, he's befriended Steve. Wanda was starting to understand what he meant and was beginning to feel guilty about the things she'd said to him. He had done nothing but help her, after all. She'll just have to wait to find out she supposed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun Fact: I'm from Chicago and I'm not kidding when I say the bean is really not worth your time. Honestly just go to Navy Pier. Also, the chapter title is from a song called Everyone's Got A Story and I highly recommend checking out the youtube video for it.


	7. Try Me Might Fight Pt. 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The girls get to hang with the boys for dinner...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You know I'm kinda just like a ghost, I appear every once and while before just disappearing again. And not that anyone asked but I really wanna drop out of school and become a stripper right now because I'm 8 chapters behind on my AP Language class reading of The Scarlet Letter.

"So then Nick called him a motherfucker and just walked off. I mean maybe not now, but in third grade, that was badass," Hill finished telling a story about one of her closest friends. Wanda thinks she said his name was Nick Fury, which was kind of a cool name. It also seemed to describe the overall personality of this guy based on her story. They'd gotten on the topic after Carol brought up how she got in a fight with a boy in second grade because he called a girl in their class ugly. Apparently, a similar thing happened to Hill and Nick when they were younger as well.

Wanda can't say that anything like that has ever happened to her, at least not personally. She's never been one for violence, but the same couldn't be said for Pietro. Even though he's only 12 minutes older than her, which he makes sure she never forgets, he was always very protective. When they were in 7th grade, an older boy named Howard hit her after she called him a horrible person for saying that third world countries were unimportant. Pietro had laid into him as though they were soldiers fighting at war, and after that, not a lot of people messed with them. Occasionally you'd get the one jerk that thinks he's better than them and tries to put himself above them, but it never worked out for them. It was those times that she'd wonder why Pietro didn't try boxing or wrestling, but he'd always loved running with a passion. He'd always race her to places when they were little kids, and of course, she always lost but she was never that competitive anyway compared to him. The only thing she was ever able to beat him physically wise was gymnastics, hence why she was a cheerleader, which she started doing in 8th grade. 

"Hello? Earth to Wanda" She snapped her head up to see Valkyrie waving her found dramatically at her. She's learned that Valkyrie could be just as sarcastic as Natasha and Carol if she wanted too. Well, she believed that no one could be as sarcastic as Natasha, but still, it was unexpected. 

"Oh sorry I was just thinking. Did you say something?" Wanda blinked a bit to fully pull herself out of her thoughts.

"I asked if you have ever been in any fights," Hill repeated what she had asked before. Wanda almost laughed before remembering that they didn't know her and were being serious.

"I've never been in any physical fights, only verbal ones. My twin was always the one for that type of stuff," She waved it off like it was nothing, but it was clear from the looks on the other girl's faces that she had something of interest to them.

"You have a twin? Why didn't you say anything before?" Carol asked, but Wanda had no time to answer. 

"You've never been in a fight before? That explains a lot about you," Natasha spoke smugly from her place on Wanda's right. She could've sworn she heard Carol snicker before the sound went away.

"Yes, a twin brother named Pietro," She made a conscious choice to ignore Natasha's comment all together instead of fueling the fire. 

"So a guy is walking around who looks just like you, huh?" Hill raised an eyebrow at her, but it seemed like a friendly gesture. Wanda appreciated that nobody was going back to what the queen of sarcasm had said.

"Oh no, we're fraternal mostly. I mean, I guess our faces kinda look similar but other than that you wouldn't know," She smiled a bit while speaking. Everyone nodded and started to bring up their families. Almost everyone, Natasha, never spoke a word for this part of their conversation. If Wanda didn't know better, she'd think that she almost looked sad or uncomfortable, but it was way too hard to tell.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

They'd all stopped talking about 30 minutes ago. A few hours had passed since they got there, and now according to the pink block-shaped clock on the dresser, it was about 5:30 pm. All was quiet, but unlike before, it was a less tense silence. It felt more like no one had anything to say, rather than no one wanted to say anything. The conversation had ended soon after they discussed family and home life. Needless to say, things have already improved since they got there, and so far there had been no more physical fights since the previous incident. 

Currently, all of them were doing their own things, and Wanda took notice as to how each seemed to reflect a part of their personalities. Valkyrie had left Carol's side to retreat to her bed, and she appeared to be drawing with a pen on her arm. Wanda couldn't tell what she was drawing. Only that she was rather concentrated and focused. She'd never seen someone draw with such intensity, at least not when they were drawing on themselves. Usually, that was reserved for when the boredom of school peaked, and there was nothing else to do. It was clear that Valkyrie had some kind of passion for this. Perhaps she wanted to be a tattoo artist or something when she got older, but that was all could be gathered by the action for now. Carol was on the floor, and while before she was doing sit-ups now, she has moved on to push-ups. She didn't even appear to be that tired or worn out by doing so many of them. That would explain why she can fight so well was all. Wanda thought about how much Carol must have to work out to do that. Her gaze moved over to Hill, who was reading something, but the cover was taken off. She thought about asking but didn't want to disrupt the peace that had settled into the room. That only left one person to observe, and it was the one person that she didn't want to think about. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Natasha's iconic hair color. Even though she could probably think of an excuse, there was no part of her all too eager to try and bother. She was just about to lean back into bed when the quiet was all too suddenly disturbed.

"Hello, girls-" Maria started to speak but was quickly cut off by the startled girls in the room.

"Jesus lady! Are you trying to kill us?" Natasha snapped and interrupted her. She was sitting up and appeared to be on high alert like she was going to have to fight someone any moment from now. Maria looked less than impressed by her tone and words. She threw what could only be described as a look of disgust in her direction.

"Natasha, that's not very ladylike and it's quite rude," The pointed look given had a part of Wanda annoyed even though it wasn't directed at her, "Anyway, listen up girls. We are going to go to the dining room to eat dinner with the boys. You can sit next to them, and it is encouraged that you do. I expect that there will be pleasant and friendly greetings occurring between them and you just like when you girls met each other." 

Wanda almost snorted at the ignorance of this woman. She could tell everyone else agreed with her based on the bewildered looks that crossed all of their faces collectively. This woman was either trying to convince herself that was all was well or truly thought that. For her sake, Wanda hoped it was the first option. 

"Well come on ladies get up and let's go," Maria clapped her hands together once to get her point across. With groans and grumbles that sounded like okays, the girls began to rise from where they had settled. Wanda fought the urge to shoot her a dirty look, but it seemed that Valkyrie, Carol, and Natasha had no such boundaries. Their frustration and annoyance painted across their faces, and they weren't hiding it by any means. 

"Oh and Carol, don't lay on the floor like that and get all sweaty. It's not appealing at all," Maria added on before she left with the door open and made her way down the hallway. 

"Bitch," Natasha had muttered under her breath as she walked away.

"At least we can agree on one thing," Wanda was already on her feet and reached her hand out to be polite and help Natasha up. She watched as Natasha looked back and forth between her and her hand before scoffing and hitting it out of the way. She got herself up and all too purposefully bumped into Wanda on her way out. Wanda refused to turn around and watch her go. She can't help it if the redhead didn't want to be friendly. That's what she told herself as she finally turned and followed Hill out the door. A tap on her shoulder made her turn around to see Carol behind her.

"Don't take it personally. People like her don't like anyone and don't have many friends because of it," Carol imparted her wisdom upon Wanda, and while she ultimately agreed it didn't mean she had to like it. The walls were no longer pink as the five of them turned the corner into what they assumed was the dining room. The walls were now a sort of ugly green color, and in the center, there was a medium-sized table with 12 seats, five on each side, and one on each end. The boys were already there, and each of them was awkwardly standing around the room. Wanda looked for the one person she wanted to see. Her eyes went to each boy before finding the right one. She saw one with short semi-curly chestnut hair, one with long dark brown hair, one with short dirty blonde hair, and then two boys who she recognized. Pietro's hair stood out among the group, and so did Steve's height. She wasted no time and left the girls immediately to reach her brother.

"Piet!" She ran up to him and smiled. Pietro's previous defensive stance and look dropped when he saw her. Instead, he smiled and hugged her like he hasn't seen her in over a day. She didn't mind because, in all honesty, she needed it. 

"Wanda! How was the girl bonding time?" He pulled back, and she saw his eyes gesture to the girls who had now sat down at the table in various seats. She took that as her queue for them to find a seat too. On the left side, there were four open seats with Steve sitting on one end of the row and the dirty blond boy sitting two seats away from him with Hill next to him on the end. Completely forgetting that Pietro had asked her question, she pulled him over to the chairs and sat down next to Steve. Pietro sat next to her and the other blond boy wordlessly and without argument. Across from them, the one with the long dark hair was seated next to Natasha, who was directly across from Wanda. On Natasha's side in order sat the chestnut boy, Carol, and Valkyrie. Maria had taken her seat at the head of the table. Chatter was starting to fill the room, and Wanda turned back to her brother.

"Wait, did you say something?" She finally remembered him asking her something. He rolled his eyes playfully and nodded.

"Yep, I asked how the girl time went sis," He reached forward for the glass of water placed in front of him. Wanda made a face before answering.

"Let's just say we aren't besties, but no one's trying to fight anyone anymore so," She trailed off to emphasize her point. Pietro nodded knowingly like he already knew the chaos that had ensued when they separated. Before he could speak again, Wanda turned her head to face Steve. She saw him fidgeting with his hands and looking across the room or rather looking at someone across the room. Wanda tried to follow his gaze but couldn't figure out who he was looking at. 

"Whatcha looking at?" She didn't regret the word vomit this time but again thought she could've been less direct. For a second, Steve seemed startled like he hadn't even noticed she was there. His face slowly and cautiously turned into a small smile.

"Nothing just staring off into space, that's all," Wanda knew that was a lie but decided not to press. She still didn't know where they stood with each other after how they left things. She opened her mouth to say something to acknowledge it, but he beat her to it.

"Listen, I'm sorry about earlier. I can get a bit defensive, and I guess I could've tried to reason with you better than how I did," He held out his hand, "So with that in mind, friends?" She didn't second guess herself at all when she immediately took his hand in hers to shake it. 

Everyone whipped their heads to the end of the table when they heard a crash sound. The man who had helped them, Tony, was attempting to carry plates and bowls of food to put in the center of the table.

**Author's Note:**

> Ok yeah, I know the name change of True Directions was bad and cheesy but I'm running on like 2 hours of sleep and three energy drinks. I'm probably gonna regret this in the morning but for now, I hope you like it.


End file.
